The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1887-01-06
THINK THEY ARE SICK.
Imaginary Ills to Which Human Flesh Is
Reir.
Mpo YOU see that lady 2o

"Do you see that lady ?"
A prominent Detroit physician indi.
Gated lady who had just left his Office.
"Well, she imagines she has consump-
ton, and this is her third visit to me.
You needn't look surprised. III were
to tell her the truth-that she hasn't the
remotest symptoms of the disease-she
would think me fool. and go to another
doctor. And if lie told her the truth she
would keep on going until she found
physician who agreed with her. The
only way to deal with persons who think
they have consumption is to humor their
whim, charge as little as possible without
exciting their suspicion, and bring them
around perfectly cured as soon as they
can be made to believe it. You have no
idea of the number of intelligent ladies
who imagine they have consumption or
cancer. Some relative or acquaintance Of
theirs has died with one of these COM
plants, and the first time they cough
they are convinced it is the beginning Of
consumption, and the least little pimple
or burning sensation drives them almost
frantic with tho thought that cancer Is
forming. The only possible way to IDEAL
with this class of cases is to thoroughly
gain the confidence of the patient. They
watch the physician like cat, and any
hesitation on his part leads them to either
imagine the worse or else set him down
az incompetent.
"I usually ask g few direct questions,
such as when the trouble was first mo-.
ticed, the exact location and intensity of
the pain, and then fall into their view Of
the matter. I assure them that they
have done wise thing in coming to me
at once, as, now that the trouble can be
taken in. time, there will be no difficulty
in efecting speedy cure. A few bread
pills and bottle of scented syrup are
prepared with the greatest care and par:
ticular directions given as to how they
are to be taken. At the next visit I
noticed a perceptible change for the
better, and am delighted, as I hardly
expected any improvements go soon.
The third visit shows complete eradica.
ton of the acute nature of the trouble,
but to provide against any return new
remedies are applied. At the fourth
visit the patient is as well as anybody;
treatment is discontinued, and I have
gained few dollars and a life long friend
and patron"
"And there is no quackery about itf',
"Not bit. But if were to tell the; /;
truth in the first place the patient would
probably fall into the hands of some uu {;
scrupulous medic who would scare the
life out of her and charge dollars where
only take cents"
"To what extent does this sort of prac-
tice exist?"
"Well, if only those who really require
physician were prescribed for, one.
quarter of the doctors in Detroit would
become Micawbers. On the other hand,
there are class of people not alone con-
fined to the poor who neglect callicg a
doctor until it is too late. He gets th
case just in time to make out the -
certificate. There are hundfeds u caslsS
terminating fatally which might hove
been saved if taken in time. This is q
very uneven world, my friend, take it,
how you will-6nancially, politicaEy,
socially or incidentally. We boass of
our enlightenment, but you have no idsa
of the superstition existing all around VS..
Why, the faith cure has SO many follow:
ers that it has almost grown respectable.
See the number of clairyoyant 'healers'
who maintain themselves. in luxury By
seeing the disease and remedy in a.
trance. How many. think you, csrry
horse chestnuts in their pockets every.
day of their lives to keep Of rheumatism,
and would not dare 60 without ones q
Not few, I assure you. Look at the
vast sales of patent medicines. Now let
me tell you something about these patent.
medicines. They are prepared for gem.
eral consumption, and for that very
reason must of necessity be without
virtue. You never hear of any one being
injured by them-that would not do, as,
it would at once stop the sale of the!
article. So they are prepared for the
most delicate child and the strongest
man-mere rash. A remedy which wills
do no one harm will do no one any good.
There are hundred other superstitions,
but I don't know as I ought to be SUR
prised at them. Medicine itself has only
recently emerged from an almost barbariS
state. Less than twenty-five years sg
we were salivating with ca.omel, cuppi1
and blistering, and bleeding for almd
everything. The counter irritant is 81
practiced to some extent"
"What is that?"
"Why, if little boy was beating
drum, and you wished to hush his moi
the way to do it would be to comme1
firing cannon. If you have a pain
your stomach put on blister and it W
hurt you so much worse that you'll rev
notice the pain. Medicated plasters
all right when applied to extract pain
any deep seated morbidity, as has of
been proven, but as counter irritant
regard them as a relic of barbaris
But, then, medicine has made a wonds
full progress in the last twenty yeal
since the homeopathic opposition hess
1t woke the old school up, and by SO ID
ing bestowed an inestimable boon upol
humanity. Its first ideas, regarding d
intestinal doses, were as much to on
extreme as the other schools doses wera
to tho othor Both eoboo1, I, -, .ocoS3ody